


Perfect

by AltruisticSkittles



Series: The First Illuminated [7]
Category: Thomas Sanders
Genre: Deceit being a lil shit, Emile is such a treat to write xD, Enemies to Friends, Forced Bonding, Handcuffed Together, Hurt/Comfort, M/M, Mentions of Death, Self depreciation, and possibly lovers?, cursing but it's only two words, like reallly bad puns, minor nsfw joke but if you blink you'll miss it, puns, that's yet to be seen, the best magic trick you're ever going to see is these two talking out their feelings
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-05-27
Updated: 2018-05-27
Packaged: 2019-05-14 10:32:10
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 9,144
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14767910
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/AltruisticSkittles/pseuds/AltruisticSkittles
Summary: Roman and Virgil couldn’t see eye to eye. They were just too different, like night and day, north and south, you get the idea. When a trick from Belial locks them into spending the night together, they end up learning a little more about each other than they bargained.Turns out, any time is the perfect time to figure out your soulmate might not be what they appear to be.





	Perfect

**Author's Note:**

> Well, didn’t this part get up and run away on me. I honestly didn’t mean for it to get that long, but here we are.
> 
> Also, I apologize in advance if you find any mistakes. That was a lot of words to go through. 
> 
> Anyway, all I can say is: Prinxiety fans… enjoy :D

“You know, it’s not even rush hour. It shouldn’t take 10 minutes, Virgil,” Roman mumbled at the counter. “The shop closes in thirty minutes, you know?”

Virgil may or may not have moved extra slow just to tick Roman off at this point. Honestly, he hated days Roman had to work late. He got this horrible entitled attitude like he was the only one who hated working 12-hour shifts.

“Easy you two,” Thomas spoke over his book.

“Thomaaaaaas,” Roman whined, “can’t you clock back in and speed up Yurtle here?”

Thomas chuckled and shook his head. “He’s your soulmate, not mine. You make him.”

The fact boiled Roman’s blood. He clicked immediately with Patton. Logan took a bit of coaxing, but a night under the stars helped them see eye-to-eye. But Virgil? Virgil, he couldn’t figure out. How were they soulmates? They barely tolerated each other. Emile was adamant they go to couple therapy to see what the kink was (pun probably not intended for once) but he was sure it wouldn’t help. Perhaps the universe did make mistakes when it came to soulmates.

The curl of Virgil’s lips confirmed his inner monologue was mutual.

“Honestly,” a voice purred from the side, “you two do make a good couple though.”

Oh, speaking of soulmate mistakes.

He watched Virgil’s shoulders tense as Belial entered the room. A swell of protective energy coursed through Roman’s veins, but he was sure it was because he couldn’t stand the way Belial tormented Virgil.

“No one asked for your opinion,” Virgil replied, finally putting the whipped cream on Roman’s cappuccino. He handed it out to Roman, but Roman’s focus was locked onto Belial.

Belial’s lips curled. He pulled a handkerchief out of his pocket and waved it around. “Want to see a trick?”

Virgil rolled his eyes, but Roman’s eyes twinkled with interest. Roman folded his arms over his chest.

“Okay, I’ll play your game,” Roman responded.

“I’ll need two volunteers,” Belial continued. His eyes shifted between the two of them. “Good thing I have two of you here unless Thomas would rather-”

“Just do your trick and get it over with,” Virgil grumbled, “so you can leave.”

“Fine, fine,” Belial replied. “Roman, you’re free to grab your coffee when you’re ready.”

“Oh,” Roman glanced over at his coffee in Virgil’s hands. He reached a hand out to wrap his fingers around the styrofoam cup, and Belial put the handkerchief over both Roman and Virgil’s hands, smothering the coffee.

“Dude!” Virgil growled.

“My coffee!” Roman barked, “do you know how long I-”

There was a clicking noise, and Virgil withdrew his hands. Roman’s hand and his coffee went with it. The two of them stared down at the handkerchief.

Virgil lifted the cloth off. A set of handcuffs rested on Roman and Virgil’s wrists, locking Roman’s right hand with his left.

“Belial, get these off right-” Virgil looked up, but Belial was nowhere in sight. Virgil’s heart rate spiked.

Roman pulled his wrist back and examined the steel around his hand. He looked up at Virgil.

“Well, this is just great! I have a movie to film tomorrow morning. I can’t show up with Blake Dreary on my wrist.”

“Look, you’re not my cup of coffee either, okay?” Virgil hissed. He pulled Roman until he exited the space separating the two counters and hurried to the door, ignoring Roman’s protests about spilling his coffee. Virgil slammed open the door and looked down the street, but Belial was nowhere in sight.

“Now what?” Roman mumbled as he ran his free hand through his hair.

Virgil returned inside. The little amount of customers inside the shop sent different looks, from amused to pitying. Virgil walked past the counter, noting the amusement Thomas tried to hide behind a strained frown, and into Emile’s office.

“Hello, how can I-” Emile’s voice trailed off as Virgil held up his wrist, bringing Roman up with him. “Well, I can see you two finally locked on to what’s causing your problems.”

“You’re not funny,” Virgil growled. “Please tell me you have the keys to these.”

“They’re not mine,” Emile replied.

Virgil resisted the urge to bang his head on the wall.

“Any more bright ideas?” Roman asked.

Virgil smirked. “We could always cut your hand off.”

“Absolutely not!”

“Now, now,” Emile spoke as he put his elbows on his desk to cradle his head. “We’re only looking for handy solutions, Virgil. No need to create an elegant Captain Hook cosplay.”

“I’m gonna-”

“Maybe this is what you need to figure out your relationship,” Emile replied.

Roman narrowed his eyes. “Did you put him up to this?”

“Who?”

“Your match.”

Emile blinked. “Wait are you saying Belial did that to you?”

“Who else has that sick villainous sense of humor?”

Emile’s lips drew into a slight frown, and he clicked his pen. He wrote something down in a book on his desk and hummed. “Well, I apologize on his behalf. He can be a snake in my boot sometimes.”

“Sometimes?” Virgil grumbled.

“I’ll try to get ahold of him,” Emile said and pulled out his phone. “In the meantime, Roman, why don’t you give Virgil a hand running the shop?”

“Are you kidding me?”

“That’s a horrible idea.”

The soul pair looked at each other as they spoke at the same time. Emile’s eyes glanced between the two of them, his lips holding that curious smile. He would love to be a fly on the wall for this. It could either go really well or really wrong, and he was tempted to document the whole process. However, he knew Virgil liked his privacy, and that was something Emile wouldn’t breach.

“Maybe Logan has a skeleton key,” Roman mused.

Virgil made an annoyed mumble of agreement. They stepped out of Emile’s office, ignoring the little snicker that escaped through Emile’s nose.

As the two came back into Logan’s shop, The Heart and Soul Cafe held no customers, and Thomas cleaned off the tables.

“Thomas, you don’t have to- You’re not even working- I’ll take care of that-”

“Don’t worry about it, Virgil. You have other things to worry about,” Thomas spoke and sent him a smile.

Virgil sighed through his nose, and Roman pulled him up the stairs and away from work.

Logan’s door separated them. Its owner probably focused on bookkeeping for the night. Roman rose his knuckles and tapped a rhythmic pattern from “shave and a haircut,” his signature knock.

After a groan from the other side, the door unlocked.

“Yes Roman, what is it?” Logan asked. His gaze softened as he saw Virgil next to him. “Is something wrong?”

“Well-” the two brought up their wrists. Logan’s eyebrows raised then shadowed his eyes.

“I’m concerned about Emile’s new methods of conjoining soulmates.”

“Don’t worry. It wasn’t him,” Virgil interrupted. “Do you happen to have a skeleton key?”

Logan looked ready to ask another question, but he answered, “Unfortunately no, and I’m sure that all the department stores that sell them are closed for the night.”

“Perfect!” Roman threw his free hand up in the air with a growl.

Virgil ran his through his hair and sighed. “Thanks anyway, Lo.”

“Are you two going to be alright?”

“To be determined,” Virgil grumbled as Roman rambled on about showing up tomorrow at work attached to Virgil.

“Yes, well, if you need the day off tomorrow, Virgil, I understand.”

“I’ll keep that in mind.”

Logan nodded and shut the door, shocking Roman out of his ramble.

“Wasn’t he listening at all?” Roman huffed.

“Was he supposed to be?” Virgil shot back with a raised brow.

Roman growled and started dragging Virgil back down the stairs. Thomas had finished cleaning the tables and flipped the sign from ‘open’ to ‘closed’ on the front door. He turned and spied the two of them walking out and smiled.

“Should I expect another house guest?” Thomas asked.

Virgil opened his mouth to speak, but Roman interrupted, “Only if I could bring Maximus with me. He’s been home alone for the past four hours, and I’d hate to leave him overnight. The offer is kind, Thomas, but I think Virgil and I will be staying at my house for the night.”

“Oh,” Thomas replied and glanced over at Virgil, who looked like he just saw his grandmother rise from the dead and do a jig on one of the tables. He smiled and cleared a laugh from his throat. “I guess I’ll see you tomorrow then, Virge.”

“I guess,” Virgil managed to squeak out.

Emile stepped out of his office and locked it. He spied the trio in the dining area and let a smile appear on his lips.

“Any luck?” Roman asked.

“He’s ignoring me,” Emile sighed.

“Of course he is,” Virgil grumbled.

“Well, have a good night,” Emile spoke and walked toward the stairs. “I hope it’s at least enlightening.”

Thomas did laugh at that, but Roman and Virgil rolled their eyes. The three walked out into the brisk spring air, and Thomas locked the door behind them. He waved goodbye to Virgil and set off toward their apartment.

Virgil drew his hoodie over his head and put his hands in his pocket, forcing Roman to walk uncomfortably close to him. If Roman minded, he didn’t say anything. Roman was more focused on the ground than anything.

“I just realized I have no idea where you live,” Virgil mumbled.

“Well, I can’t drive us there attached to you,” Roman replied. “I could try, but I’d rather not.”

“You mean, you don’t ride a horse everywhere, Prince Charming?”

Roman snorted through his nose, and Virgil thought he saw the ghost of a smile. Roman pulled out his phone and dialed a number. He raised it to his ear and waited a moment.

“Allen? Yeah, it’s- yes I know what time it is. I need a ride.” He paused. “Yes to my house… I have a card, don’t worry about the gatekeeper. Can you help me or not?” An exasperated expression came over his face. “Okay, thank you.” Roman brought the phone down from his ear and sighed through his nose.

He glanced over at Virgil and continued, “That was my cousin. He’s coming to pick us up.”

“Oh,” was all Virgil could think to say, even if he had 52 questions.

It didn’t take long for a car that belonged in the 1980s to stop on the side of the road for them. Roman opened the door and slid in first, and Virgil awkwardly followed him in.

A man with long black hair pulled into a low ponytail, silver-framed glasses, and a 5 ‘o'clock shadow turned to look at them. He raised a brow and hummed.

“Wow, Romanov, you didn’t tell me you met a soulmate,” he mused.

“You haven’t exactly been that close,” Roman shot back.

“Yeah, which is why I’m surprised you called me.”

“Well, Maria was most likely asleep, and you know how Joe-”

“Yeah, yeah, just buckle up Miss Daisy so we can get going and I can go back to sleep.”

Virgil peeked out of the side of his hoodie at Roman, who looked ready to sink through the car cushions. His number of questions rose, but he lowered his expectations for answers and settled for staring out the car window instead.

“So‘, have you known Roman long?” Allen asked and glanced in his mirror at Virgil.

Virgil, who just realized he was being spoken to, pulled away from the window and searched for his voice.

“Maybe a month or two,” Roman answered for him.

Allen sucked in a deep breath and blew heavily through his mouth. “You have my deepest sympathy.”

“Hey!”

Virgil would’ve enjoyed Roman’s annoyed expression under other circumstances. However, something about the way Roman held his frame sent warning signals through his brain. Something was off, but he couldn’t tell what.

“No offense, of course, but I know Roman can be a bit… high maintenance,” Allen said as he turned onto another road, “that’s a good word for it anyway.”

Roman looked ready to argue but sucked in a breath and nodded. Virgil studied the shifting of Roman’s eyes, how his teeth bit slightly on the inside of his bottom lip, and how he kept tucking that stray hair out of his eyes.

“So, how do you know Roman?” Virgil piped up.

Allen let out a light laugh. “We’re cousins. My mom took him in when his dad-” he looked in the rearview mirror at Roman, who sent a glare back at him, “well my aunt couldn’t help but take in a family member, even if they are a pain in the butt, so I’ve known Roman for a really long time.”

Well, that gave Virgil more questions than answers. Thanks, Allen.

The rest of the car ride settled into an uncomfortable silence, and Allen pulled onto a road with a gate across it. The man at the box leaned out the window. Roman passed up a card to Allen, and Allen stuck it in the slot. The light went from red to green, and the gate started to swing open.

Allen pulled through and drove up a road with houses that cost more than Virgil would ever see in his life. Most of them were dark, but a few had lights in the window. The car slid down a white stoned pathway and up to a large white house that sat catty-cornered on the end of the driveway. It must’ve been three stories high. Virgil wondered why Roman needed a house that big, but he didn’t say anything.

“Last stop, snob hill. Everyone out,” Allen spoke.

“Thanks, Al,” Roman mumbled. He let Virgil open his door and followed him out.

“You know, there are two doors,” Allen snarked, but Roman shut the door on him. He watched his cousin laugh before backing down the driveway. Roman ran a hand through his hair before he fished his keys out of his pocket.

Virgil stared up at the large white pillars, which lead to a roof with a balcony on top of it and tried not to imagine how much it cost. Roman pulled out his keys and led Virgil to the door. He unlocked it and let the door swing open.

The inside was just as (if not more) fancy as the outside. Marble tile lined the floor, and a staircase circled from the bottom floor to the top floor. A living room sat to his left, and the kitchen rested behind the stairs. The door to their right must’ve lead out to the garage.

“Maaaax I’m home,” Roman called out.

Virgil heard the scratching of claws on the tile. His heart pounded, and he did his best to hide behind Roman. His shield sent an amused look his way.

The golden retriever thundered down the stairs and drove his shoulder into Roman’s legs. Roman leaned down and rubbed the dog’s ears with his free hand. Max lapped his tongue all over Roman’s face and let out whines of overexcitement.

“Yes, I know. I’m sorry, buddy. I planned on being home a lot sooner.” Roman laughed as the dog licked his face once again. “I bet you’re hungry huh? I’ll get you a snack before bed.”

Max peeked over Roman’s shoulder, and his tail went from 45 speed to 72 speed. He came around Roman and jumped at Virgil. Virgil cried out and fell into Roman’s back.

“No, Max, down,” Roman spoke and pushed Max off of Virgil’s lap. Max smelled Virgil’s shoes and went rather still. However, three seconds later, he returned to his previous speed and looked up at Virgil with loving eyes.

“Come on, Max, I’ll get you food,” Roman continued and waved his hand. The ball of energy bolted down the hallway and toward the kitchen. He sent an amused glance over his shoulder at Virgil, “You’re not afraid of dogs, are you?”

“No, I just,” Virgil swallowed. “He startled me, okay?”

“Worry not, lest ye be a squirrel, he’ll leave you alone.”

Virgil followed Roman through the house to the kitchen. The stainless steel appliances and eggshell colored walls looked too pristine for someone as colorful as Roman. Nevertheless, he didn’t dare comment on it.

Roman pulled a can of dog food from the cabinet and opened it. He mixed it with some sort of high-end dog food and put it on the floor. Max bit into it like it was his last meal. Roman reached down and stroked the dog’s fur, and his tail went a mile a minute.

“He does sleep in my bed, so I hope you’re not bothered by dog hair.”

“Well, Salem leaves hair on everything too, so…” Virgil’s voice trailed off. He looked away from Roman’s questioning eyes and cleared his throat. “So, how are we going to… you know… get ready for bed and stuff?”

Roman looked down at his wrist. “Well I don’t think we’re getting our shirts off anytime soon, so we’re going to have to sleep in our clothes. I do have some sweatpants in my drawer if you want to change out of your jeans, however, they may slip off your hips. You’re a bit… smaller than me.”

Hah, understatement of the century. However, the relief that he wouldn’t have to take his shirt off in front of Roman eased Virgil’s nerves a bit. He didn’t need to explain anything-

“-before bed?”

Virgil’s head snapped back to attention, and he stared at Roman with a blank expression. Roman let out a light laugh.

“You weren’t listening, were you?” Virgil shrugged, and Roman continued, “I said, do you need to use the restroom before bed?”

Virgil shook his head. He’d rather hold it than have someone standing way too close to comfort while he did his business. Roman mumbled a “suit yourself” before starting up the marble staircase.

“I’d give you a house tour, but I’d have to join you everywhere anyway, so,” Roman kept going. He stopped in front of a room and opened the door.

The smell of sandalwood incense tickled Virgil’s nose. Unlike the rest of the walls in the house, this room held a rich red color. The hardwood floor stretched across a room bigger than Virgil’s entire apartment. The double doors in the back lead out to the balcony he spied earlier. White curtains with golden stars on them lay tied beside them.

The walls had several musical posters, all ones that the local theater put on years ago. They were all signed by the cast, some with personal notes to Roman. Thomas’s name showed up a lot.

Roman lead them over to a canopy bed with a galaxy quilt on it. Huh, if anyone, Virgil expected Logan to have a galaxy comforter, not Roman. He could see the dog hair from here, and he knew Salem would be less than pleased to find out Virgil spent time with another animal, but he had no choice at this point.

“I guess you’ll take the left side?” Roman asked.

“Well yeah. I’d rather not stare at you all night,” Virgil grumbled.

“The sentiment is mutual.”

Roman’s dull voice somehow stung a bit. Virgil shouldn’t care, but he couldn’t help but feel a little offended.

The two walked over to a drawer, and Roman pulled out a pair of red sweatpants and a pair of black sweatpants. He handed the black pair to Virgil, and Virgil noticed they had tiny white pawprints on them.

“So, who’s going first,” Roman asked. Virgil’s heart rate increased.

“I don’t want them,” he said and shoved them back in Roman’s direction.

“You sure?” Roman asked and rose a brow. “I can’t imagine jeans being that comfortable-”

“I don’t mind, really. It’s not the first time I’ve done this- sleep in jeans I mean.”

Roman sighed and mumbled a quick “suit yourself” before sliding his pants off his hips. Virgil gasped and held back a surprised squeak. He looked away, his cheeks flushing a bright red.

“Warn me next time, will ya?” Virgil managed to mumble out.

“There shouldn’t be a next time,” Roman pointed out, but he soon remembered he’d have to do this again in the morning. The thought of bringing Virgil on set brought a groan to his lips. “Tomorrow is going to be interesting.”

“Excuse me?”

“Well, when I show up tomorrow with you attached to my wrist, the whole set is going to see our soulmarks lit up.”

Realization drained all the color from Virgil’s cheeks. “You mean-”

“There goes all our privacy for the next few months.” Roman sighed. “Paparazzi will be all over that story in minutes. We won’t be able to go anywhere alone anymore.”

“Can’t you just call up and cancel?”

Roman made an offended gasp. “I’m not going to lie and set production back. There are people counting on me to help them keep a job, and besides, it’s wrong to tell a lie to get out of work. I’m honestly shocked you of all people would suggest it. Besides, it surely won’t be the first or last time my personal laundry was hung for the world to see.”

Virgil sunk into his hoodie, and Roman noted how his whole frame trembled. Paparazzi were inevitable for Roman, no matter what he did, so it didn’t bother him much. But Virgil? Virgil probably never even made it into the local newspaper for his birthday. Of course, eventually people would find out about them, so the secret was a ticking time bomb, but still… this couldn’t be an easy pill for him to swallow.

Virgil very much liked his privacy, after all.

After he finished dressing, Roman rolled the comforter down and slid across the bed until he rested on the other side. Virgil followed him in and pulled the blanket up to his nose. He felt a strange pressure from it. It felt rather comforting, actually.

“Roman, why is your blanket crushing me?”

“It’s a weighted blanket,” Roman answered. “It helps me sleep when-” Roman’s voice caught, and he took a deep breath. “Do you mind it?”

“No, it’s fine,” Virgil replied, interested in what Roman had to say but not eager enough to question it.

Roman took in a deep breath through his nose and released it through his mouth. “I have to wake up at 4:00-”

“As in the morning?”

“Well yes,” Roman shot back with a laugh. “We can’t all sleep in until noon.”

Virgil growled under his breath and pressed his head into the too soft pillow beneath him. “That’s usually when I go to sleep.”

“No wonder you’re an anxious mess.”

“Well duh. I usually can’t sleep until 4 anyway.”

A silence set between the two of them, and Roman’s eyes slid to their corners to glance at Virgil. An untold story lay just behind those almost violet eyes, but Roman knew Virgil would never spill his secrets. How could he expect him to when he had so many of his own?

Max pushed open Roman’s door and jumped onto the bed. Roman greeted him, and the dog walked around in search of the perfect spot to sleep. He tried to nestle up beside Roman but found it impossible with the lack of space between Roman and Virgil’s hands. He settled on lying on Roman’s feet. The golden retriever flopped onto the bed with a large sigh. Roman sat up and rubbed his hands over the dog’s soft fur, and Max’s tail flopped around. After a few whispers of what a good boy Max was, Roman covered himself up with the blanket and resettled himself.

“Well, I’m going to sleep,” Roman spoke and turned off the lamp beside him. The room cascaded into darkness, and Virgil’s eyes blinked. He could’ve sworn he saw lights glowing on the ceiling- wait, he did.

“Roman, you have glow in the dark stars.”

“Yes,” Roman replied. He paused and continued, “do they bother you?”

“No, I just… I didn’t expect you to like stars as much as you do.”

“They’re comforting. My mother and I used to go stargazing at our cabin when I was little. They’re… some of the best memories I have.”

Virgil heard Roman swallow a lump in his throat. Roman’s body stilled beside him, and Virgil spared a glance. His eyes were closed, and his chest fell in a nearly rhythmic pattern. Did he really fall asleep that fast?

The glow from Roman’s tattoos peeked out from under the blankets, casting a red and golden glow on the blankets. The stars may not keep him up, but Roman’s tattoos would. His own glow brought a purple light around his pillows, and for once, he thanked his soulmark for appearing in such an invisible spot. At least his own glow wouldn’t remind him of the weird feeling he had toward Roman.

Virgil pulled out his phone and frowned at the 45% battery level. That would last him maybe 4 hours if the Tumblr app decided to be kind and not drain it. He turned on his data and thanked his phone provider for not charging him extra.

Virgil opened his messages and scrolled through at least 59 new notes. He smiled as a few praised his work, frowned as some were asking for timely help, and answered a few before more messages swarmed into his inbox. Virgil grumbled as he deleted at least 3 attacking his character for no reason. People could be so petty sometimes. He put his phone against his chest and took in a few deep breaths.

As he stared up at the ceiling, he got the odd feeling of being watched. He turned his head and met Roman’s eyes.

“What?” he asked. Roman studied him for a moment. “Roman, what? Are you awake?”

“Yes.”

“Then what-”

“You started breathing heavily.”

Virgil blinked. “And that woke you up?”

“I wasn’t asleep.” Roman rolled over onto his side. “What were you looking at?”

“Nothing,” Virgil mumbled. He didn’t need Roman getting any other negative assumptions about his character. “Don’t worry about it.”

Roman opened his lips to speak but sighed through his nose. “Is it your family?”

“No- well kinda. I mean, not really.”

“A distant relative?”

“Wha-no. Nothing like that.”

“Then who-”

“Roman, drop it.”

“Well, obviously they matter to you if they upset you that bad.”

“Lots of things upset me that bad.”

“Then if it doesn’t matter, why-”

“Roman,” Virgil set his jaw. “Let. It. Go.”

Roman drew in a deep breath through his nose. Virgil’s pulse quickened, and he decided to stare at anything other than the person chained to his wrist right now. He swallowed thickly.

He could still feel Roman wanting to ask questions. Why couldn’t he drop it? Better yet, why did he care? He didn’t even like Virgil, let alone tolerate his problems before. Couldn’t they just pretend the other one didn’t exist until they got these stupid linked bracelets off and go back to their lives like nothing happened?

“You know, Allen used to send me texts telling me I couldn’t do it,” Roman spoke. He rolled onto his back and let out a long sigh.

Virgil turned his attention back to Roman with a curiously rose brow. “And that’s important because…?”

“Because I used to believe him.”

Virgil furrowed his brows. He couldn’t imagine anything but Roman being his normal, confident self. He snuffed through his nose.

“Yeah, okay.”

“I’m completely serious.” Roman paused as he bit his lips together. “Whenever I would try out for something, or I’d take on a new job, or I’d gotten my lead role, he’d always be there to taunt me and tell me I couldn’t do it. At first, I was rather good at ignoring him, but then I started to wonder… what if he was right?”

“But that’s not true.”

“Obviously not,” Roman replied, “but my younger self… for some reason, Allen had this chip on his shoulder from the day I moved in. He kept making snide comments about my parents. We got into a lot of fights, and I don’t think we ever stopped until my aunt stepped in.”

“What did your parents ever do to him?”

“I don’t know, but he had a lot of fun taking it out on me.” Roman dry laughed. “My aunt told me he was jealous because I had enough nerve to try. Allen always aired on the side of caution and then judged others who succeeded. Apparently, he was projecting his own insecurities onto me, and I was absorbing them like a sponge. Did you know I almost didn’t take up the big role that landed me here?”

“Why, because it was a dumb idea?”

“Because I was scared I would fail.”

Virgil’s smile faltered. “I didn’t mean-”

“I know what you meant, it’s fine.”

“So why are you telling me all this?”

Roman sighed heavily through his nose and ran a hand over his face. He contemplated his words before speaking again, “Because I haven’t told anyone else this, and I trust you to keep it a secret.”

“Roman, why do you even care what he thinks? He sounds like a complete jerk.”

“He’s the only family I have.”

“That doesn’t give him the right to say those things.”

“You don’t understand. When you come from no support system, you’d do anything for a little bit of praise.”

Virgil let out a weak laugh. “Now, that’s where you’re wrong. I know exactly what that feels like.”

Roman waited for Virgil to continue, but he should’ve known better.

“So,” Roman paused, “your family-”

“I don’t like talking about them.”

“Okay, well then… can I talk about mine?”

Virgil inhaled and exhaled before doing a side shrug. He wasn’t going to sleep anytime soon. “Yeah, sure. Knock yourself out.”

“You know, when I was little, I had long hair like my mother. I wanted to be just like her. She was the most beautiful person I knew… long golden hair, beautiful blue eyes, she looked like a modern-day Cinderella and worked twice as hard. She used to take me down to the creek by our cabin, and we’d roll up our pants legs and go fishing for frogs. She said if I caught one, I should always kiss it to turn it back into royalty-”

“Eww-”

“-but I never did catch one, thankfully. I almost did, but I ended up falling on a rock and spraining my ankle. I think for two weeks, we did nothing but sit on the couch, eat ice cream, and watch Disney movies together.”

“Sounds nice.”

“She was more than nice. She was an angel sent down to watch over me.” Roman’s voice caught. “I think she still is.”

Virgil turned over and saw Roman brush tears from his eyes quickly. “What… happened to her, if you don’t mind me asking.”

“My mother’s immune system was never the greatest. In fact, I think we spent just as much time in the hospital with her as we did at our home. One day, she got really sick with the flu. No matter what we did, she couldn’t shake it. The doctor said complications lead to her developing Pneumonia. I didn’t know what it meant, but I knew my mom was strong, and she’d defeat this beast of a virus, just like she had always triumphed over every other ailment that befell her.”

Virgil felt like he knew this story. “I’m guessing she didn’t.”

Roman sighed. “Losing her destroyed my father. My mother’s medical bills fell into our laps, some not even from the flu themselves, and my father did everything he could to keep us afloat. He was a gentleman, never saying much, but always supporting those who needed it. I wish… I wish I could’ve supported him better than I did.”

“How old were you… you know, when she died?”

“I was about five.”

“You did all you could, I bet.”

“I tried, but I was hurting too. I remember taking a lot of my anger out on my father.”

“You were just a kid.”

“It doesn’t make it right. In fact, I think I was the reason he picked up the bottle to begin with.”

Virgil went eerily silent. Roman turned his head to make sure Virgil hadn’t fallen asleep on him, and he flinched as he met fierce eyes.

“Did he ever hit you-”

“Goodness, no, that’s not what I was implying at all. My father would never- never did strike me. He became an alcoholic, and I remember him coming home some days so drunk he couldn’t remember my name or that my mother had died. He used to cry himself to sleep on the couch.”

“That sounds rough.”

“But I got through it, thankfully. I just wish he did too.”

Another long silence. Virgil’s mind wove with an air of familiarity, and he took a deep breath.

“He died when you were fourteen, didn’t he?”

Roman sucked in a deep breath and turned his head. “You- how did you know that?”

Virgil started laughing and nearly scared Roman out of the bed. He let his amusement die and swallowed hard. “Because I think you told me this story a long time ago.”

“Nonsense. I never told you anything like this before.”

“But what about “your anxious nightmare” on Tumblr?”

He didn’t dare look at Roman, but he imagined his eyebrows slowly raising with realization.

“That’s you?”

Virgil turned his head and nodded. “Hey there, Princey.”

“That’s a name I haven’t heard in forever,” Roman said with a laugh. “I can’t believe this whole time, I knew who you were but never knew we were- wait, you disappeared suddenly about six months ago. What happened?”

“That was when I lost my job. I had to drop my internet to keep myself afloat, and I couldn’t afford a high-end cell phone anymore.” Virgil swallowed. “It was the hardest thing I ever did.”

“Why didn’t you tell us you were having a hard time? We would’ve-”

Virgil looked back up at the ceiling and sighed through his nose. “I know, but you all had your own problems. I didn’t want to bother you with mine.”

“Virgil, you touched all our lives by just being open and accepting. No matter what we came to you with, you always made sure we were well taken care of. It’s one thing that attracted me to your blog to begin with. You didn’t care how popular someone was. If they came to you for help, you were willing to help. Had I known you were having such a rough time, I would’ve jumped over heaven and earth to help you back up onto your feet.”

Virgil’s barely audible voice dripped with venom as a scowl set over his face, “Sure, you’ll help Anxiety, but you wouldn’t help Virgil.”

Roman froze as realization seized every muscle. He had the chance. In fact, he had a million chances since the day he met Virgil, but instead, he treated him like he was gum stuck to his favorite pair of shoes.

“Virgil, I-”

“Don’t even finish that sentence.”

“But-”

“I know exactly what you’re going to say,” Virgil snuffed. “You’re going to go on this long rant about how much my life sucks but it can get better, and how you want to dig me out of this hole. I don’t want your sympathy. That’s why I never told anyone.”

“Then how about an apology?”

Virgil’s head snapped over in Roman’s direction. Roman’s eyes held an emotion rarely seen on his face, and it honestly made Virgil’s heart jump. He watched Roman swallow hard and open his mouth to speak again.

“I haven’t been that nice to you since we met, and I want to let you know, you didn’t deserve any of that.”

“Well, I haven’t exactly been a saint to you either.”

“That doesn’t mean you deserve it.”

“But really, I don’t think I’d want it any other way.” Virgil paused. “I trust you to be honest with me. Patton’s nice and all, but I can’t help but wonder what he thinks when I’m not around. And Logan, well I know he wouldn’t lie, but those moments of silence when he’s not talking to me, I always assume the worst. You? You’ve told me nothing but exactly what’s on your mind, so it’s comforting to know you hate me to my face.”

“What kind of-”

“Believe me, for someone with anxiety, it’s a lot less taxing to know someone hates you than to sit there and wonder if their tolerance towards you is fake.”

“I don’t hate you, Virgil.”

“No, you don’t hate Anxiety. Virgil is very much on your hate list.”

“Then perhaps it’s because I don’t know the real Virgil.”

Virgil opened his mouth to speak but closed it soon after. “You’ve known the real Virgil since you’ve met me in that coffee shop.”

“I’ve known half of the real Virgil. The other half is floating around on the internet somewhere.”

“You really think Anxiety isn’t just a persona? That it’s not all fake because I don’t want to come off as a hateful and sarcastic person to others?”

“I think you’re more compassionate than you give yourself credit for. You do care about people, Virgil, and not just because you don’t want them to hate you. I think it’s because you know what it feels like to be alone, and you never want anyone else to feel that way.”

“Oh yeah? How would you know that?”

“Because I saw it the day you protected Logan from me. I saw it when Patton worried himself sick while Remy was in the hospital, and I know you watch out for Thomas like he’s your brother, even if you don’t have to. You’re a good person, Virgil. I just can’t understand why you see yourself as the villain.”

“Maybe because I’m just playing the part society dumped on me.”

“Have I… ever made you feel like that?”

Virgil snuffed. “Honestly?” He took in a deep breath. “Yeah, kind of.”

“I didn’t mean-”

“You yelled at me because your coffee was taking too long.”

“Well, that was-”

“You told me I was stupid for starting over when I thought I forgot something.”

“That’s because I watched you-”

“You tell me to “shut up” every time I defend myself-”

“Okay, Virgil, I get it!” Roman realized he shouted and turned away. “If anyone has been the villain thus far, it’s me.”

“Roman, I didn’t mean-”

“You have every right to be upset with me. I don’t think about what I say sometimes. I’m impulsive, I know. The problem is, I’ve never stopped to think that maybe what I say does hurt people, because I used it as a defense mechanism for so long. It doesn’t make it right, but that’s how I got Allen to leave me alone.”

“Roman-”

“And besides, it’s not like I actually mean to hurt people. It seems to happen just by me existing. I can’t tell you how many souls I hurt in the past just by showing interest, just because I was too lonely to deal with waiting until my soulmate came along.”

“Roman, I-”

“I mean, I’m far from perfect, but-”

Virgil lifted his hands to cup both sides of Roman’s face, squishing his cheeks together and locking his jaw open.

“Will you shut up for like two seconds?”

Roman did his best to look annoyed, but judging by the smirk on Virgil’s face, it didn’t work.

“Maybe I don’t want you to be perfect,” Virgil replied. He slowly let go of Roman’s cheeks, and Roman moved his jaw into a solid frown. Virgil rolled onto his back and flopped his head against his pillow. “Maybe I like you just you just the way you are.”

“Please,” Roman rolled his eyes. “You liking me? What could I ever do to make you even like me? So far, all you’ve ever done is complain about me, and rightfully so. I’m not enough to keep you happy, so why bother lying to me?”

Virgil pursed his lips. “Why do you do that?”

“Do what?”

“Say you’re never enough for people?”

“Because I’m not.”

“You’re enough for me.”

Virgil heard Roman take a sharp breath, and he turned his head to the side. Heat rose to his cheeks as he swallowed hard. Why did he just say that? Why did he just say that?! He couldn’t take it back now. Roman was probably offended, or worse.

“Say that again.”

“What?” Virgil’s voice squeaked.

Roman didn’t answer, and Virgil turned his head to check Roman’s expression. Roman’s eyes met his, and for once they looked ready to shatter if Virgil looked away. Roman’s bottom lip sat secured between his teeth, and he held his breath.

Virgil let out a weak laugh. “You’re enough for me. You always have been.” He sighed and turned his head back to the ceiling. “Look, I don’t care if you tease me, hate me, or think we’re not even meant to be soulmates, but don’t you ever say you’re not enough for me. If anything, I’m not enough for you.”

“Virgil,” Roman’s voice came out broken. The noise cracked Virgil’s heart, and he grabbed onto the bed sheets to ground himself.

“Sorry, I shouldn’t have said anything.”

“No, I-” Roman searched the air for his words, “Don’t bring yourself down to bring me back up.”

“I’d have to be up to be brought down first.”

A long pause set between the two of them. Roman’s laugh sounded like chimes on a clear day.

“We really are a mess, aren’t we?”

“Understatement of the century,” Virgil replied and let his eyes close with a smirk.

Virgil wasn’t sure when, but at some point, he lost himself to the dark comfort of that room. Must’ve been that blanket.

Roman woke when his alarm buzzed on his phone. A warm weight pressed against his forehead, and he slowly opened his eyes. Virgil’s forehead rested right against his. His eyes were still closed, those dark circles Roman always thought were makeup still sitting on his cheeks.

Roman didn’t realize it, but at some point, he rolled over and wrapped Virgil into a one-armed hug. He retracted his hands from around Virgil’s waist. His fingers rose and fell over the valley and peaks of Virgil’s ribcage, and Roman grimaced. He shouldn’t be able to feel that under all this fabric. Just how thin was he?

The motion stirred Virgil, and he rubbed his forehead against Roman’s. His eyebrows furrowed before he blinked his eyes open.

“Good morning,” Roman spoke, his voice heavy with sleep.

Virgil seemed to smile for a moment, but it must’ve been a trick of the light, because in seconds he flung himself backward. His chained arm pulled Roman with him. Virgil lost his balance in the blanket and nearly fell over the side of the bed. Roman’s wrist snagged, and Virgil twisted as the handcuffs kept him from losing his spot. The metal dug into their wrists, and Roman and Virgil both winced.

Roman reached out and grabbed onto Virgil’s other wrist. He pulled him back to a spot where Virgil could sit comfortably.

“Sorry, I didn’t mean to scare you.”

“It’s fine,” Virgil grumbled. He rubbed the sleep from his eyes and pulled his phone from his pocket. “What time’s it?”

“About 4,” Roman mumbled. He glanced over at his phone and scrolled through three missed texts from his agent.

“It’s too fucking early for this,” Virgil mumbled.

Roman made a mock surprised gasp. “I’m telling Patton you said that.”

“I fucking dare you.”

Roman laughed through his nose and shook his head. He looked up at the spot Max occupied last night. At some point, the golden retriever must’ve wandered out of the bedroom. Roman brought his phone up to his ear and held his index finger to his lips. Virgil almost asked when Roman started coughing up a storm.

“Jackson? Yeah, it’s Roman.” He paused. Virgil could hear the “you sound terrible” through the other end. “Yeah, feel terrible too. I don’t think I can shoot today.” He let out a string of coughs again. “Think I’m gonna be sick bye-” He hung up the phone and let out a long sigh.

“Did you just lie to get out of work?” Virgil put his hand to his chest in mock hurt. “I’m surprised at you.”

“No, I merely acted sick to stop them from seeing you as my soulmate,” Roman replied. “I know you like your privacy.”

Roman’s phone started vibrating again, and Virgil glanced down at a young man in sunglasses lighting up the screen.

“That’s Jackson,” Roman noted. “He’s my agent. He’s probably going to be calling all day to check up on me.”

“Wonderful,” Virgil mumbled.

Roman let the ringing stop and watched it light up once again. Roman sighed and picked it up.

It was scary how easily he slipped back into his sick persona.

“No, I don’t need you to stop by,” Roman said with a weak laugh. He let out three coughs. “I’ll be fine. You needn’t worry.” Virgil watched Roman flick his eyes up in his direction before sending a side smile. “I have Max, so I won’t be alone. It’s just a-” Roman mocked a gag and took the phone from his lips. Virgil had to hold in a laugh as Roman pretended to throw up over the side of the bed. He continued, “just a cold I think. Nothing I can’t handle.”

Jackson’s frantic voice spoke over the phone, and Roman rolled his eyes.

“I’m sure I’ll be fine,” Roman replied. “Send Minnie my apologies. She’s probably ready for makeup as we speak.” He paused. “Oh, she is. Well, then I’ll send her a basket of flowers as an apology tomorrow.” Roman coughed before muttering an “I’ll make sure to get plenty of rest” and hung up the phone with a quick good-bye.

He turned to Virgil’s questioning eyes and continued, “Minnie is my makeup artist.”

Virgil made a hum of acknowledgment. “I gathered that much.”

“We should probably make it to the coffee shop before someone sees us,” Roman mumbled. He could slip a sweatshirt over his shoulders and keep the other hand in his pocket until they made it to the coffee shop to divert suspicion. “Besides, it’s going to take us an hour to walk there from here, unless you want to take the bus.”

Virgil groaned and ran a hand through his hair. “Whichever gets us out of these the fastest.”

Roman nodded. He got out of bed and changed into a clean pair of jeans (this time warning Virgil before he dropped trou) and walked down to the kitchen to get Max some breakfast. The golden retriever again dug in like it was his last meal, and Roman unlocked the dog door to let Max run free in the backyard for the day.

Roman dug through his closet for a sweatshirt, mumbling that none of them went with his outfit. Virgil couldn’t help but roll his eyes. It was going to take them forever to get to the Heart and Soul Cafe at this rate.

“Why not this one?” Virgil asked and pulled out a red hoodie with a golden crown on the front of it. Roman wrinkled his nose.

“That old thing? I haven’t worn it in years.”

“Then why do you still have it?”

“Sentimental value.” Roman looked ready to continue but instead pulled it off the hanger. He slipped it over his head and struggled to get it down over his chained arm. Virgil assisted him with his other hand, and Roman sent a grateful glance out of the corner of his eye.

Roman pulled the hood up over his head and drew the strings tight. It smothered the light peeking out from his neck. Virgil snickered at how ridiculous he looked, but a sharp glance from Roman stifled it.

The two began walking over to the Heart and Soul. Roman lived maybe five miles from the cafe, so they should be there by the time Logan opened his doors… provided they kept up a constant speed and the traffic signals were forgiving.

The sun peeked over the small city’s skyline, and the two made it to the cafe without any trouble. Thomas, as always, stood in the back and prepared everything for the morning shift, and Logan made sure the register was fully stocked. Even Emile was out and about this morning with the preparations, washing down the counter next to Logan, and humming a song.

“Oh, Virgil, you’re early,” Thomas mentioned. Logan and Emile both glanced up at the same time in the same way, and it made Roman snort through his nose. He forgot they were brothers sometimes.

“How’d it go last night?” Emile asked with a smile.

“Don’t make it sound dirtier than it was,” Virgil grumbled. Roman pulled his wrist out of his pocket, and the hoodie slipped up as they both showed off their unwanted friendship bracelet.

“Belial should be in for his scheduled appointment in about two hours,” Emile spoke. “I told him if he didn’t, there’d be consequences.”

Virgil tried not to imagine what “consequences” meant and nodded. He pulled Roman over to the books as Roman slipped the sweatshirt over his head. They could be themselves without judgment here, thankfully. Virgil went to his favorite secluded spot behind a bunch of non-fiction books and nestled down. He pulled out his dying phone and groaned.

“Thomas, do you have a charger?” he called over the books.

Thomas’s muffled cry as he hit his head off of something (most likely the counter if Virgil gathered evidence through experience) and called back, “Yeah, it’s in my bag in the locker room.”

“You’re a lifesaver,” Virgil called back. The two soulmates went to the locker room (after Virgil made sure Thomas was okay) and got the charging device from his bag. Virgil sighed with relief as his phone accepted the charge and drank electricity like groundwater in a drought.

Customers started coming through the door, and Virgil pulled Roman back into the books. They didn’t need anyone questioning what was going on, especially since Remy and Patton would be arriving in about 15 minutes.

Rush hour always filled the cafe with life. Many people who came here were patrons of Emile, and quite a few showed up with their soulmate on their shoulder. Some were here because they felt safe, as Logan brought a safe space for those who felt they had nowhere to go, and others came just to talk to Thomas early in the morning. For someone so introverted, he sure had a lot of friends. Roman noted he was adopted by his extroverted friends at the theater, and the rest tagged along as a result.

“Belial D. Ceitful,” Emile’s voice rose over the crowd. The cafe quieted, and Virgil had to stop himself from laughing out loud. Roman bit his lip as well. “I need to speak to you in my office.”

Virgil was tempted to peek out from the bookshelves to see the look on Belial’s face. He heard Belial say something, but he couldn’t make it out from this distance. Part of him wondered what Emile’s cross face looked like, but the other half didn’t want to know.

After what felt like ages, they heard Belial grumbling as he searched the books. He stopped at the corner where Roman and Virgil rested, and Emile flanked him on the right side. Belial looked annoyed, and Virgil would be lying if he said he didn’t love how Emile could get under his skin.

“Now, unlock them both,” Emile spoke. He didn’t look cross, but his voice definitely held a fatherly tone to it. Belial sent a side glance at him, and Emile crossed his arms.

“Fine,” Belial said as he rolled his eyes. “You all are no fun.” He pulled a key out of his pocket and approached the two of them. With a twist of his fingers, Roman and Virgil felt the heavy weight of forced friendship slide from their wrists. “There. Happy?”

“I’d rather be Doc,” Emile spoke and put his hands on his hips.

Belial rolled his eyes again, but a ghost of a smile slipped onto his face. “Whatever. You going to start my session now or not?”

“Hi-ho it’s off to work we go. And boy do I have a diamond in the rough to pick out,” Emile spoke and linked his arm around Belial’s own. Belial squeaked in surprise as Emile dragged them off together, whistling as he did so.

“I’ll never understand how he can stand him,” Virgil grumbled.

Roman stood, relieved when Virgil stayed on the floor. “Well, that’s one of life’s mysteries we’ll never solve.”

“How Emile can be so cheerful all the time?”

“No, how the universe picks the most unlikely people to be soulmates.” Roman glanced out of the corner of his eyes and watched Virgil’s eyebrows raise. “Now, I have to go home and pretend to be sick for the rest of the day. I know I told Jackson not to worry, but the man is a walking ball of nerves. He has a knack for taking care of people better than he does himself. I have no doubt he’ll swing by my house to check on me, and if I’m not throwing up on the couch, I’ll regret not being sick for once.” Roman paused. “Come to think about it, he reminds me a lot of you.”

“Yeah, whatever,” Virgil grumbled. He watched Roman walk to the edge of the bookshelf. “Wait-”

Roman turned, and Virgil’s words caught in his throat. He swallowed hard and found his voice again.

“You know, last night wasn’t too bad,” Virgil mumbled.

“It wasn’t,” Roman agreed. “Maybe next time we should do it on our own terms, however.”

“I agree,” Virgil replied.

A bright smile flashed onto Roman’s lips, and Virgil’s heart skipped a beat. “See you tomorrow, Anxiety.”

“Whatever, Princey,” Virgil shot back. Roman walked away and left Virgil in the silence of his racing thoughts.

Last night may not have been wanted, but it was definitely something the two of them needed. Virgil didn’t always agree with Roman, or more obviously like him all the time, but at least after last night, he had a little more respect for him. The two had some chemistry, he couldn’t deny that. And perhaps, through their own messed up way, the two of them could figure out how to keep each other afloat and away from their own problems together.

Maybe the universe wasn’t as bad at picking out soulmates as the two of them thought.

**Author's Note:**

> For more on the Illuminated universe, check out my Tumblr @altruistic-skittles


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